History is filled with uncomfortable truths. Yet, for many, it’s easier to hold on to comfortable myths, which are simplified stories that gloss over the harsh realities of the past. One such area, rife with misinformation, is the Sixties Scoop, a dark chapter in Canadian history marked by the mass removal of Indigenous children from their families.
Today, a new kind of denialism tries to downplay its impact, recasting it as a good-hearted child welfare effort and breaking its connection to the ongoing crises in Indigenous Canadian communities. However, the historical record tells a different, much more devastating story. The notion that these removals were isolated incidents, benevolent, or a relic of the past is undermined by the weight of evidence. It reveals a systematic, policy-driven effort that caused trauma across generations.
What Was the Sixties Scoop?
Before we address the myths, we need to grasp the reality. The term “Sixties Scoop” refers to the large-scale removal of Indigenous children from their homes by provincial child welfare authorities, which took place from the 1950s through the 1980s. About 20,000 First Nations, Métis, and Inuit children were taken, often without their families’ consent, and placed in mostly non-Indigenous foster or adoptive homes across Canada, the United States, and even Europe (Indigenous Foundations, 2016).
This was not a series of random events. It resulted directly from a 1951 amendment to the Indian Act, which gave provinces control over Indigenous child welfare. Social workers, frequently lacking any understanding of Indigenous culture, entered communities and applied Euro-Canadian living standards to homes they deemed “unfit.” This set the stage for a national tragedy (IRSHDC, 2022).
The Anatomy of Denial
Denialism seldom appears as a blanket rejection of facts. Instead, it operates using a specific set of tactics: shifting the goalposts, selecting data to support its view, and creating false comparisons. Let’s break down the most common myths about the sixties scoop policy:
Myth 1: “It wasn’t a policy, just a few well-meaning social workers.”
This is perhaps the most persistent myth. People in denial ask for a single government document titled “The Sixties Scoop Policy.” When they find none, they declare the entire event a fabrication. This fundamentally misinterprets how systemic policies function. There was no single law, but the Scoop was undoubtedly the result of a policy framework and administrative changes.
The key policy was the 1951 amendment to the Indian Act. This change allowed provincial agents to operate on reservations, creating a legal pathway for mass removals. The results were immediate and dramatic. In British Columbia alone, the number of Indigenous children in provincial care skyrocketed from just 29 in 1951 to 1,466 by 1964 (Indigenous Foundations, 2016). This is not the work of a “few” individuals, it is the clear result of a systemic change.
Myth 2: “It was just standard adoption to protect neglected children.”
This argument falsely equates the consensual, culturally-aligned practice of adoption with the forced, cross-cultural removals that defined the “Scoop”. Evidence shows that social workers routinely misinterpret Indigenous family structures, communal child-rearing, and traditional diets as signs of neglect (Indigenous Foundations, 2016).
Moreover, a responsible child welfare system should strive to keep children within their families and communities whenever possible. The Sixties Scoop did the opposite. Children were systematically placed in non-Indigenous homes, severing their ties to their language, culture, and identity. Until policy changes in the 1980s, authorities often failed to notify a child’s band of their removal, making it nearly impossible for communities to step in or for families to locate their children (IRSHDC, 2022). This was not child protection; it continued the agenda of the residential school system, which was winding down just as the Scoop was accelerating.
Myth 3: “The harm is overstated, and it all ended decades ago.”
This claim dismisses the profound and long-lasting damage as mere anecdotes while ignoring the vast evidence of survivor testimony and research on intergenerational trauma. The trauma of the Scoop goes beyond a sad childhood; it involves a violent disruption of identity. Survivors report feeling alienated from both their adoptive white communities and the Indigenous communities they were taken from, struggling with a deep sense of not belonging anywhere (Indigenous Foundations, 2016). This dislocation is a direct cause of the higher rates of mental health issues, substance abuse, and family breakdown found in survivor populations.
This trauma did not end when the children grew up. It was passed down. When a generation lacks healthy parenting models and cultural identity, they often struggle to provide those things for their own children, perpetuating a cycle of pain (IFSD, 2023).
Most troubling, the system that enabled the Scoop has not entirely disappeared. The overrepresentation of Indigenous children in care continues in what many now call the “Millennium Scoop.” In 2016, Indigenous children made up a staggering 52.2% of children in foster care, despite accounting for only 7.7% of the child population in Canada. Although the removal system has been reformed, it is still operational.
Why The Truth Matters
Facing history or the past in general is not about placing blame; it is about acknowledging the truth. The denialist playbook focuses on picking selected success stories, asking for impossible proof, and leaving out important context from statistics. This approach aims to avoid responsibility and dismiss the experiences of tens of thousands of survivors.
The historical record is clear: the Sixties Scoop was a systemic process, empowered by federal policy and executed by provincial authorities, continuing the destructive legacy of residential schools. It caused deep, multi-generational harm that is closely tied to the social and health crises facing Indigenous peoples today.
Recognizing this uncomfortable truth is the only basis on which genuine understanding and reconciliation can be built.
Sources
Hanson, E. (2016). Sixties Scoop. Indigenous Foundations, University of British Columbia. https://indigenousfoundations.arts.ubc.ca/sixties_scoop/
Indian Residential School History and Dialogue Centre (IRSHDC). (2022). The child welfare system and the Sixties Scoop. University of British Columbia. https://irshdc.ubc.ca/learn/the-child-welfare-system-and-the-sixties-scoop/
Gillis-Kendall, S. (2023). Intergenerational Trauma to Intergenerational Transmission. Institute of Fiscal Studies and Democracy (IFSD), University of Ottawa. https://ifsd.ca/2023/04/intergenerational-trauma-to-intergenerational-transmission/